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Open Range (2003) was filmed in Alberta, Canada—not Montana, where the story is set. Disney’s D23 film entry identifies the Stoney Indian Reservation and other Alberta locations as filming sites. Location records also list Morley, Longview, and Calgary, while Harmonville was a temporary set built for the film rather than a real Montana town.

Where was Open Range filmed?

Open Range was filmed primarily in Alberta, Canada. Disney’s D23 film entry identifies the Stoney Indian Reservation and other Alberta locations as production sites. Location databases also list Morley, Longview, Calgary, Alberta, and Canada.

The film’s story takes place in Montana in 1882, but the cameras were not filming in Montana. Alberta provided the open grasslands, ranch country, and frontier landscapes needed to represent the fictional Montana setting.

Location How it relates to the production What can be confirmed
Stoney Indian Reserve Principal filming area west of Calgary Identified by Disney’s D23 and other location references
Morley, Alberta Community associated with the Stoney Nakoda area Repeatedly listed as a filming location
Longview, Alberta Rural Alberta filming area Listed as a location, but no verified scene-by-scene addresses are available
Calgary, Alberta Production center and access point for nearby filming areas Listed in production-location records; recognizable downtown scenes are not established
Alberta, Canada Broad regional production label Confirms the province and country, but is not a separate property or town

The Stoney Indian Reserve and Morley

The most important filming area was the Stoney Indian Reserve west of Calgary. In modern geographic and cultural references, this area is associated with the Stoney Nakoda First Nation near Morley, Alberta.

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Morley is therefore more than a generic Alberta location listing: it is the community connected with the Stoney Nakoda area where much of the production operated. However, public sources do not provide a complete shot-by-shot map showing exactly which scenes were filmed at which point within the reserve area.

That distinction matters when interpreting online location claims. A listing for Morley or the Stoney Indian Reserve confirms the general production area, but it does not automatically verify a precise campsite, riding route, building, or camera position.

Longview, Alberta

Longview is also listed as a filming location for Open Range. The available records associate the town with the film’s rural Alberta footage, but they do not identify verified scene-by-scene addresses or coordinates.

Longview should consequently be treated as a documented municipality-level location, not as proof that every nearby ranch, road, or landscape shown in online maps was used in the movie.

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Open Range [DVD] [2004] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC] by Kevin Costner
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Calgary’s role in the production

Calgary appears in production-location listings and served as the Alberta production center and an access point for the surrounding filming areas. That does not mean the finished film contains recognizable downtown Calgary footage.

The available records establish Calgary as part of the production geography, but they do not identify specific city streets or buildings visible in the final cut. The film’s most prominent landscapes and frontier settings came from rural Alberta locations and the purpose-built town set.

Was Harmonville a real town?

No. Harmonville, the frontier town seen in Open Range, was a temporary movie set constructed for the production. It was not an existing Montana settlement.

Production reporting summarized in the Open Range production notes says the filmmakers built the town from scratch because existing towns did not meet the requirements for the story. The town set cost more than $1 million to build, took approximately seven weeks, and required about $40,000 for an access road before construction could begin.

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The set is associated with the Morley/Stoney Indian Reserve area west of Calgary. There is no authoritative public source in the available records that provides a verified current street address, public visitor location, or confirmed coordinates for Harmonville. It should not be presented as an intact tourist town that can be visited today.

When was Open Range filmed?

Principal photography ran from June 17, 2002, through September 8, 2002, according to Kinoafisha’s filming-location listing. The production had to support large-scale Western scenes in Alberta, including cattle movement, riding, and the town-set action.

Approximately 225 head of cattle were used, with professional cowboys handling them, according to the Open Range production notes. That scale helps explain why the production required substantial rural space and logistical access rather than relying only on small studio or town locations.

Why people think it was filmed in Montana

The confusion comes from mixing up the film’s setting with its production location. Open Range is set in Montana in 1882, and its landscapes are designed to look like the American frontier. But the documented filming locations are in Alberta, Canada.

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Montana, Wyoming, Texas, and Colorado should not be listed as principal filming locations based on the available verified records. Alberta is the documented production province.

Complete location list

The location records support the following list:

  1. Stoney Indian Reserve
  2. Morley, Alberta
  3. Longview, Alberta
  4. Calgary, Alberta
  5. Alberta, Canada, as a broad regional listing

“Alberta” and “Canada” are broader database-level entries, not additional confirmed filming properties. The specific named areas are the Stoney Indian Reserve, Morley, Longview, and Calgary.

Can you visit the filming locations?

You can visit the communities and general Alberta region associated with the production, but the available records do not establish a complete public film-location tour. In particular, the Harmonville set does not have a verified current visitor address in the cited sources.

Exact coordinates circulating online for cattle camps, riding scenes, or the gunfight set should be treated cautiously unless they come from an authoritative production record or a landowner-approved source. A general location listing is not enough to verify private-land access or a precise filming spot.

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At a glance

Question Answer
Where was the film actually shot? Alberta, Canada
What area hosted the principal filming? The Stoney Indian Reserve area west of Calgary, associated with Morley and the Stoney Nakoda First Nation area
Was the story set in Alberta? No. The story is set in Montana in 1882.
Was Harmonville a real town? No. It was a temporary purpose-built movie set.
When did filming take place? June 17 to September 8, 2002
Is there a verified public address for the town set? Not in the available authoritative records

FAQ

Was Open Range filmed in Montana?

No. Although the story is set in Montana in 1882, the production filmed in Alberta, Canada.

What Alberta location was used most prominently?

The Stoney Indian Reserve area west of Calgary was the principal filming area. It is associated with the Stoney Nakoda First Nation area near Morley.

Where is Harmonville from Open Range?

Harmonville was a temporary town set built for the film near the Morley/Stoney Indian Reserve area. It was not a real existing town, and the available records do not provide a verified current public address.

Was Open Range filmed in Calgary?

Calgary is listed in production-location records and served as a production center and access point. The available sources do not establish that recognizable downtown Calgary scenes appear in the finished film.

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Was Longview, Alberta, used for filming?

Yes. Longview is listed as a filming location, although the available records do not provide verified scene-by-scene addresses or coordinates.

Can I find exact GPS coordinates for every scene?

Not from the available verified records. They identify regions and municipalities rather than a complete shot-by-shot map. Online coordinates should not be treated as confirmed without an authoritative production source or landowner-approved information.

The Bottom Line

Bottom line: Open Range was filmed in Alberta, Canada, principally around the Stoney Indian Reserve and Morley area west of Calgary, with Longview and Calgary also listed in production records. Montana is the film’s fictional setting, not its filming location. Harmonville was a temporary set that cost more than $1 million to build, and no verified public address for it is available in the cited records.

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